1. Technical Field
This invention relates generally to golfing equipment. More particularly, this invention relates to training aids used with golf clubs. Specifically, this invention is directed to a training aid and a method of using the same which includes a C-shaped base which snap-fits around the grip of a golf club, and includes a single arm angling downwardly and forwardly away from a top end of the base; and further includes a contoured support pad at the end of the arm which contacts the golfer's trailing forearm and substantially prevents the wrists from breaking during the playing of a shot.
2. Background Information
When a golf ball is a few feet off the green and the golfer wants to get the ball up out of the long grass and going straight for the hole, and he or she has to take a shot that is generally 10 to 15′ in distance, then that shot is called a chip shot. It is a very tough shot to learn as it requires a high-angled full swing of a club such as an 8 or 9 iron. On every other type of shot where full swing clubs are used from drivers to wedges, the golfer must break his or her wrists during the shot. Breaking is a term used to describe the golfer bending their wrists during the shot. A chip shot, on the other hand, is played like a putter. So, for the average golfer not to break their wrists, i.e., for them to not bend their wrists when playing this shot, is going against all the muscle memory of that golfer. Golf instructors claim around 99% of amateur golfers tend to break their wrists when playing chip shots.
In order to play a chip shot successfully, the golfer must assume the correct posture and maintain their arm position through the stroke to the end without bending their wrists. In fact the shoulders, arms and club are ideally locked in a Y-type of configuration throughout the stroke. Additionally, the club should be almost directly aligned with the leading arm.
According to www.Free-golf-lessons.com in order to play a chip shot successfully the shot is played like a putting stroke except the motion should last a little longer. The golfer should adopt a posture in which their arms form a triangle with their shoulders as they swing the club rearwardly and through to when they finish the stroke, the golfer should attempt to maintain this triangular shape. According to the website, the golfer needs to keep their left wrist flat. The site states that “This is the part of the stroke where it becomes tempting to hit the shot with your hands and not your whole body. If you do your left wrist will break down and bend so that the club head gets ahead of your hands. This leads to very poor contact. Keep your left wrist flat throughout the shot and your club will never pass your hands.” According to the website one of the most important things for a golfer to remember is to ensure that their left wrist is flat at impact as this will ensure that the left wrist does not bend on impact of the club with the ball. The wrist has to stay flat through to the end of the stroke. A way to ensure that the golfer holds the correct posture, the site suggests that the golfer holds their finishing posture until the ball has stopped rolling.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,203,568 (Vasquez) discloses a training aid for helping to train a golfer's muscle memory to play a chip shot without allowing their wrists to break. The device includes an L-shaped support member which has a first leg which has to be held by the golfer's hands against the grip and a second leg which rests on the top end of the grip. If the golfer lets go of the device it will drop away from the grip. The device includes one or two links which are each secured to the top surface of the second leg of the support member by a coupler. The coupler is fixedly engaged with the top surface of the second leg and the link extends outwardly therefrom in a generally horizontal orientation. The link extending outwardly to the golfer's arm extending upwardly from the lower hand is substantially aligned with the centerline of the support member. That link is also disposed generally at right angles to the first leg of the support member. When two links are provided on the training aid, those links extend outwardly from the top surface of the support member and in opposite directions from each other. The first link engages the golfer's left arm and the second link engages the golfer's second arm. Both links extend substantially horizontally outwardly from the top wall of the second leg.